Ejaculate characteristics and artificial insemination in rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) following ovulation induction using teaser bucks

Abstract

Series of experiments were conducted at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Farm, Bauchi, Nigeria to investigate the reproductive performance of local and exotic rabbits. For the local and exotic rabbits, the mean (± S.E) gel-free volume, gel volume, progressive motility, sperm concentration, total sperm per ejaculate, % live spermatozoa and % abnormal spermatozoa were 0.61±0.02 vs 0.80 + 0.01ml; 0.37 ± 0.02 vs 0.48+ 0.01ml; 65.42± 0.68 vs 71.83 +0.70; 74.47 ± 0.50 vs 101.00+ 0.34 x 10⁶; 45.66+ 1.45 vs 80.75+ 1.68 x 10⁹; 73.95± 0.86 vs 85.48 ± 1.00% and 17.23 + 0.23 vs 13.84+ 0.21% respectively, and were significantly (P< 0.05) different between the breeds. The results also showed that kindling rate (11.80 vs 14.71), number of young born (14.0 vs 22.0) and mean litter size (3.5 vs 4.4) for local and exotic rabbits respectively, and did not differ significantly between the two breeds. The Dutch rabbits are superior to the local ones in terms of their reproductive performance, and could be used to upgrade the local breeds. It is also suggested that when conducting Al in rabbits, appropriate method of ovulation induction should be opted for in order to achieve maximum conception rate.